from Jenny:

Whoa! Hello. This is Jenny Raak. I broke my cello bow yesterday. That was a bummer. Anyway, today we went shopping in this GIGANTIC mall. There are some amazing things in there. I bought a silk dress, and I can hardly move in it, but thatâ€™s okay, because itâ€™s a freaking Chinese dress. How many times do you see those, eh?

The highlight of yesterday, besides our humongous concert, was Margaret and I saw this guy publically urinating on the sidewalk as we drove by on the bus. That was NOT expected. And right now I am enjoying a vanilla milkshake and waiting for French fries, or we think we ordered French fries. The menu was kind of unclear. Oh, yes, we just got French fries. Good good. And mom, donâ€™t freak out, but we almost die every time we drive around in the bus. People here can squeeze through cracks between cars IN their cars. It drives me crazy. People are so impatient.

from Margaret and Allison:

Hello All. This is Margaret Heffernan and Allison Young! We were just at the Chinese school, Shimen Experimental School. When we first arrived in their auditorium, they cheered us on and clapped! We felt so special, like we were actually famous or something. It made Margaret and I want to be celebrities.

First they had special performers for us and two announcers who spoke English very well. The first performance was the â€œxither, â€œ an instrument laid on a table with many strings. She played fantastically and it sounded very oriental. We really enjoyed how foreign it sounded. After her was a drama group performing a play called â€œSave the Animals.â€ It was a group of younger students acting out a nest of quails that was attacked by hunters and Happy Lucy saving them. They lip synced to a track and it was very melodramatic when the hunter shot a quail. It was the most adorable thing that we have ever seen. Next after the play was a solo saxophone player, and he was the best that we have ever heard. Last was a dance group that danced traditional Chinese dances, I think. Their outfits were very colorful and had long scarves on them that made them look very smooth. It made Margaret and I wish we could actually dance too.

Then some of our students performed. Eloise and Kenna performed a Â complicated violin solo together, the bassoon players played a very amusing trio, and Alex F. played a section of a beautiful clarinet concerto. It must have impressed the students because they cheered enthusiastically afterwards. The officials had us stand on the stage after to take pictures with the other performers. It was very cute. We were then led to the large cafeteria for lunch. We were told that the school is a boarding school and the thousands of students live there. It made us really appreciate how lax schools are in the United States.

Lunch here was, funny enough, the best that we have had yet (besides the McDonalds). They had very delicious and familiar food for us and were happy to serve us. Lunch was so very good. Soon after we finished, the students began piling in to eat their lunches, and we had to leave quickly so we wouldnâ€™t get swarmed by all the people. They were very friendly and waved and talked to us and made us feel really important. We didnâ€™t get to talk to very many of them though before we had to leave, but it was definitely a memorable experience.

Their schools are so pristine and organized. Each student has a special uniform that they have to wear and we are so glad that our schools at home donâ€™t make us dress the same. We wish we could have spent more time there but for now, it was nice just to see what the schools there look like. We appreciate the United States much more now! Until next time Tzai Gien. (yes, we understand that we did not spell that right at all. We tried though, give us credit.)

from Kenna â€“ THE SHOW

Hello, its Kenna. I will tell you all a little bit about the show some of us went to last night! Alright, it all began yesterday mid-afternoon when Janice told us of this â€œmagical, fantasticâ€ show preformed on the Ly River. Any doubts I had about the price and the worthiness of the experience were soon shattered as I heard more- 600 performers would be on the river at once and the creator also did the Bejing Olympics, I was all for it.

Later that day after dinner we all set out on the â€œRockies Tour Busâ€ and listened as our guide, Dogmeat (friend) Jeff, warned us about â€œpocket pickersâ€. After a short and entertaining ride we made it to the theatre. As I got off the bus I was greeted by a sea of umbrellas and excited chatter (none of which I understood). The air was heavy with the threat of rain and lightning lit up the sky and surrounding mountins every few minutes. I tried not to lose the group and we all held hands, shoulders, pockets, anything to not get separated in the crowd. After a ten minute walk, we made it to the actual seating area and found our seats just as the show began.

Clang! Clang! The symbols and drums pounded until in the middle of the lake a stage appeared and several Chinese women began to sing. The show continued with many people singing and dancing on rafts and the dock in front of the crowd. Every scene change was dramatic and astounding, a visual feast. There were hundreds of people on these tiny rafts and it was all so expertly coordinated, I was amazed noone fell in. The music was haunting and still, the lightning continued, illuminating the mountains in the background. At this point, I realized it had started to rain. At first it was no biggy and then it kept getting heavier and heaving. Soon, it was dumping entirely. The performers kept at it, holding umbrellas to protect their costumes, which im sure were ruined anyway, but props to them. Then, despite beliefs it couldnâ€™t rain any harder it became a cloudburst, I held out my hands and face, and felt so alive. Everyone was soaked through and as we went back to the bus, I knew I would never forget any of it. The show, the rain, those are the moments it is good to be alive. Â P,s. sorry mom for the conventional mistakes I am sure I made, you are probably laughing at me, love you!